The present invention relates to a system and method for adjusting a media-playing set and relates, in particular, to a system and method facilitating adjustment of the operational characteristics of the set.
The advancement of technology has made it possible to provide more features in media-playing sets at lower cost than previously. At one time, media-playing sets, such as televisions, had a limited number of controls including, for example, an on-off button, a volume control, and a channel selector, and were equipped to receive a handful of local broadcast channels. Modern systems, on the other hand, are typically designed to receive input signals from a variety of input sources, and the number of channels received can approach or exceed one hundred. These can include not only traditional air broadcast channels but also satellite and cable broadcasts. In addition, the set may process signals from directly connected peripherals such as computers, videocassette recorders, digital video disc recorders, compact disc players, stereos, and so on. Hybrid forms have increasingly appeared including televisions able to process digitized signals, such as in MPEG-2 or -4 format, and computers or miniplayers able to process television or other media broadcasts via a tuner card or through upstream conversion to digitized format.
In this environment, where media formats, sources, and types are found in ever expanding variety, it has become increasingly important to provide controls that enable the user to effectively adjust the operational characteristics of the set so that the picture and sound, for example, are optimized for the particular type of input received. Typically this task is performed by enabling the user to bring up an on-screen control item, say the brightness control, by navigating through a control menu with keyboard and mouse or, for example, with the navigational buttons of a handheld remote control. After selecting the control for adjustment, normally the user is presented with choice between various settings, for example, the user may be able to move a slider bar rightward to select a higher setting or leftward to select a lower. Once the user has made the choice, the new setting then takes effect so that the broadcast program or other media type being played on the set conforms to this new setting. If the user is unhappy with the new setting, the user can repeat the procedure and select a different setting.
The difficulty with the adjustment procedure just described is that the user is often uncertain as to the potential effect of changing the setting. Rather than tediously trying each setting until the optimal setting is found, the user is likely to make one or two attempts to improve the setting before giving up, perhaps resigning himself or herself to a new setting that provides even worse reception than before. The likelihood of this can be appreciated by recognizing that in changing one setting, an adverse effect can result for a different setting. Some users, uncertain of what the overall effect will be from changing a particular setting, may conclude it is best to leave all the settings alone. This, in turn, can lead to the set being blamed for inferior quality of manufacture when, in fact, the poor reception experienced by the user and possibly his or her acquaintances is merely the result of the settings being off.
In accordance with the foregoing, a principal object of the present invention to provide a system and method that enable the user to more effectively adjust the operational characteristics of a media-playing set. In particular, it is desired in such system and method that the user not be deterred from adjusting the operational settings by the perceived tediousness of the procedure or the risk of further reducing the reception quality.